She's dabbled with an album of classic covers, she's dabbled with writing more of her own songs and producing a full album on her own.

In recent years, it's as if Martina McBride has been trying to find the kind of inspiration for herself that she's given to so many of her fans through the years.

This time 'round, she's got it back.

McBride's 10th studio album, "Shine" is fully stocked with songs that capture her passion and suit her perfectly, on standouts ranging from the thumping hit single "Ride" to the twin-slide guitar fueled "Wrong Baby Wrong Baby Wrong," which boasts an intro straight out of the Keith Richards book of ragged and rugged riffs.

Part of the singer's inspiration was no doubt supplied by Nashville producer Dan Huff, who has played guitar on many of McBride's past hits. He's behind the boards this time (and out front as well, adding plenty of guitar), and the collaboration sounds like a strong one.

The mix of material is right on target. McBride's show-stopping voice is showcased frequently but tastefully, never in the bombastic form we hear from the numerous divas who can't come close to her control, clarity, range or depth.

Her voice soars with special strength on the slow building power ballad "I Just Call You Mine," and the same goes for "What Do I Have to Do." She captures the emotion of an abused child in the mandolin-backed mystery saga "Wild Rebel Rose," an artfully-penned song that probably could hold its own as a movie concept.

And while McBride didn't write nearly as much for this album as she did for 2007's "Waking up Laughing," her one co-writing contribution "Sunny Side Up," is one of the album's most appealing and playful tracks.

A Nashville treasure and a national treasure, McBride sounds re-energized and "Shine" is one of her best albums in years.

Martina McBride, "Wrong Baby Wrong Baby Wrong"

The Dream, "Love vs. Money" (Def Jam). 4 stars.

He's made his name as a songwriter, penning such huge hits as "Umbrella" for Rihanna, "Touch My Body" for Mariah Carey and "Single Ladies" for Beyonce, and that's just a fraction of what The Dream (Terius Nash) has been up to.

There's also that matter of his own recording career which kicked off in late 2007 with his debut "Love Hate" and absolutely explodes with this rhythmic, melodic, erotic, occasionally nasty and downright soulful sophomore set "Love vs. Money."

The Dream's a hit-maker and while there's nothing formulaic about this 14-song outing it is clear that the guy and his co-producers Tricky Stewart and Carlos "Los" McKinney have a knack for crafting intricate rhythms filled with unexpected twists that still lock into supreme dance-floor grooves.

He explores old school R&B with Mariah Carey on "My Love," brings Kanye West in for some guest rapping on "Walkin' on the Moon," and gets raunchy frequently, like on the sizzling slow jam "Sweat it Out," and the rather predictable bonus cut with Lil Jon, "Let Me See the Booty."

Still even cynics will find The Dream's sense of melody tough to ignore, particularly in "Right Side of My Brain," and the piano-swirling, six-minutes-plus of "Fancy."

Dan Hicks and the Hot Licks, "Tangled Tales" (Surfdog). 3 stars.

photo courtesy DanHicks.netDan Hicks

When he started in the late 1960s and early '70s, Dan Hicks was so far on the fringes that he actually sounds fairly normal now, a guy who has gracefully grown older in a business that typically devours its young.

Still playing a distinctive band of "outlaw swing music" that's heavily influenced by one of his musical heroes Django Reinhardt, here are Hicks and the Hot Licks circa 2009 turning it on with "Tangled Tales."

The man who brought us "I Scare Myself" and so many other great songs, delivers highlights here like the rapid-fire, very amusing "13-D," the acoustic fire of "Who Are You?" the lightning fast title track and even a solid cover of Bob Dylan's "Subterranean Homesick Blues."

The disc features an array of stellar guest musicians, including David Grisman, Charlie Musselwhite, swing guitarist Bruce Forman and the masterful violinist Richard Greene, among others.

Dan Hicks, "Subterranean Homesick Blues"

Dan Hicks and the Hot Licks play the Iron Horse Music Hall in Northampton on Sun., April 5.

Added value is a big buzzword in the music industry these days, for those trying to make physical copies of CDs more enticing.

The Indigo Girls are trying a novel approach with their latest album "Poseidon and the Bitter Bug," which offers virtually the same songs on two individual CDs, except the first CD is played with a full band and the second CD is acoustic.

Now since Indigo Girls' Emily Saliers and Amy Ray have generally leaned toward a relatively acoustic-based sound through the years, hearing them go from the electric side to the acoustic side isn't quite as dramatic as hearing, for example, Seether do a thundering hard rock version of Wham/George Michael's "Careless Whisper."

While some of the songs lack the memorable melodies so closely associated with the Indigos' music during the past 20 years, the ladies are in decent form here, harmonizing their way through the lyrically-intriguing "Driver Education," which had appeared on Ray's solo album "Prom;" paying homage to lost friends on "Ghost of the Gang;" and offering the sturdy late night campfire feel of "Second Time Around."

The album was produced by Mitchell Froom, who had most recently worked with Saliers and Ray on 2006's "Despite Our Differences."

Any album that starts with the Brinsley Schwarz 1974 classic "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding" sets some high expectations from the beginning.

Of course when we're talking about a "Best of" collection from the esteemed British songwriter Nick Lowe, there are going to be plenty of other songs guaranteed to shake up true rockers everywhere.

This very generous 49-song double CD is filled with Lowe's pub rockin' masterworks, ranging from "Cruel to Be Kind," "Ragin' Eyes," and "Half a Boy and Half a Man," to "All Men Are Liars," "I Knew The Bride (When She Used to Rock and Roll)," and many more.

Disc two, which mainly focuses on work that Lowe has recorded since 1990 is a little more mellow than the first disc, but songs like "The Beast in Me," the very amusing "Shting-Shtang," and 2007's "Long Limbed Girl," reflect the many facets of the man's storied career.

Hardcore Lowe fans will want to search out the deluxe edition of this set, which includes a bonus DVD with nine music videos and a 2007 concert filmed in Belgium.

There have been a lot of these vintage soul, doo wop and oldies shows seemingly sustaining PBS pledge drives for awhile now, and here's one more.

The difference this time though is in the quality of the material, culled from a June 2008 concert celebrating the legacy of songwriters and producers extraordinaire Kenny Gamble & Leon Huff.

With the help of some very talented collaborators Gamble & Huff put Philadelphia on the musical map in the 1970s as a soul capital that was only surpassed by Detroit.

Sadly, several of the original performers are no longer with us - notably the great singer with Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes, Teddy Pendergrass. Still the group is well remembered here as "Harold Melvin's Blue Notes," and they turn in a couple of the two hour show's highlights in "The Love I Lost," and "Wake Up Everybody."

The sound has a sterility at times that reeks of a lot of post production work (common with the PBS Specials), but if you cast that aside and just listen and watch The O'Jays doing "Use Ta Be My Girl," The Delfonics' "La-La - Means I Love You," or Jerry Butler's "Never Gonna Give You Up," this is guaranteed to send you flying back to a different time.

Bonus material includes a documentary on the preparation for the concert and the history of the label.